Amusement apparatus



April 12, 1949. F. B. SELL'ARDS 2,467,338

AMUSEMENT APPARATUS Filed Nov. 8, 194's flaw/r 5. 5544,4905,

F'atentecl Apr. 1 2 194$;

UNITED STATES PATENT osncs AMUSEMENT AIP'A-Itlt'lllilS-:

Frank B; Sellards,-North Hollywood; Calif. Application November-8, 194.6, Serial No. 708,711 7 4 Claims. .(Cl. 27233).

The present invention relates to an amusement Y apparatus in general and particularly to a person-.. device.

propelled exercising and entertaining More specifically the invention comprises a playground apparatus which is operated by the user, repeatedly shifting his weight relative tothe axis of rotation of the device at the proper time.

Playground or exercising apparatus necessitating the expenditure of reasonable amounts of physical energy are widely accepted for their beneficial and entertaining characteristics. Every playground is provided with its swings, merry- A further object is to provide an exercising and. entertainment apparatus in which the usershi-fts;

his weight in proper time phase relationship to produce rotation about a fixed inclined axis.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a turntable rotatable about an inclined axis and provided with means by which the user may position himself so as to be enabled to shift his weight to effect rotation.

These and other more specific objects will appear upon reading the following specification and claims and upon considering in connection therewith the attached drawing to which they relate.

Referring now to the drawings in which a preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a rotatable turntable or platform constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 is a side view of the invention illustrating the inclination of the axis of rotation and one method of use by a single person; and

Figure 3 is a vertical section through the mounting means for the rotatable platform.

Referring again to the drawing, the unit is seen to comprise a circular table or platform H provided with spaced apertures l2 which are arranged and shaped to receive the toes and hands of a user when resting upon the platform on his hands and knees in the manner illustrated in Figure 2. A large child or an adult would make use of the outer apertures l2 while a smaller person could use the. apertures moreclosely spaced. I The apertnres aresufficiently (large-as to enablestheil toe portion of the shoe'uto extend; therethroug lrz as illustrated in the drawing, andxtherplatform itselfis of. a thickness such thatxithe :usersrfingers can reachand extend-along;thezundersidei thereof to obtain acpositive grip. vWhentwo' or more. persons --use therlmachinerthey would ;:sit back-.to-back-with their heels gpositionedhin ztheti outermost apertures and; inwthisevent use would.v probably be madeiof utheiapertureszltatithe userfssr. side as hand openings:

Platform I! is rotatably supported :by aspin dle I3 formed with an integral top platetxM to which the platform is directly-:securedxby screws It. The. spindle is supported for rotationiubyx spaced bearings H, the upperof; which takesithe thrust load; the outer races-:of each bearing mountedin the'bore of the tilted upperupon tion l8'of a mounting element :01 sleeve; indi-m cated' generally: by thereference character: l9. Mounting element l9, also. includes an -.internal1:y1. threaded .lower portion 21 the rcentralclongitudinaliaxis of which extends vertically:andlaccordsv inglyiatl an angleto the spindle-.13;

The threaded lower portion of body element I 9 seats nonrotatably and fixedly upon the upper end of a vertical post 22 preferably extended into the supporting ground and maintained in a vertical upright position by means of a plurality of legs 23 which extend laterally. Post 22, legs 23, and the mounting element l9 are made of strong and relatively heavy metal to provide a stable and strong construction which will function as a firm foundation for the rotatable platform H and its load.

In the operation of the unit constructed in accordance with the present invention, the device is preferably positioned upon a fiat supporting surface. If desired the device may be placed upon the ground, in which event the post 22 could well extend below the ground level. If preferred, however, the lower extremities of the post 22 and of the laterally extending legs 23 can make contact with the supporting surface in a single plane to provide a foundation which is quite adequate.

With the unit positioned upon the supporting surface the user mounts the platform II in the manner illustrated in Figure 2 placing the toes of the feet through two of the outermost openings l2 and grasping two of the diametrically opposed openings 12 with the hands in the manner illustrated. He can then, by leaning forwardly and slightly to one side or the other of the center line, shift his center of gravity relative to the axis of rotation of the platform comprising the shaft or spindle l3, and cause the platlform H to rotate in its effort to move the cenjter of gravity to the lowermost point thereon. l The operator quickly gets the feel of the mechanism and learns to shift his weight at the proper time interval so that the platform is rotated continuously and at an accelerated rate.

Instead of taking the position illustrated in the drawing the user may, if he prefers, sit down upon the device with his legs extended in front of him. His position would be approximately central and the optimum position could be determined experimentally. Use would again be made of the side openings as grips for the hands to provide stability and the device would be operated again by shifting the weight by leaning the body or some part thereof.

If two or more children are seated upon the platform, their feet will, be positioned in the outermost openings l2 and their backs will be together. The result described can be obtained by the cooperative action of the children in shifting their weight to approximate the action described for the single user.

While the particular apparatus herein shown and described in detail is fully capable of attaining the objects and providing the advantages hereinbefore stated, it is to be understood that it is merely illustrative of the presently preferred embodiments of the invention and that no limitations are intended to the details of construction or design herein shown other than as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a playground device, a platform having a supporting shaft and formed with openings adapted to receive the feet of the user and with openings adapted to receive his hands, means to support said shaft for rotation about an inclined axis between the openings for the feet and for the hands and including a hollow element, and a base supporting said element at an angle.

2. In a playground device, a flat platform provided with apertures to receive the feet or the hands upon opposite sides of a center point, a 4

spindle fixedly attached to said platform, a supporting element formed with upper and lower angularly related bores opening at its opposite ends, said spindle extending rotatably into the upper of said bores a base extended into the lower of said bores to support said supporting element with said upper bore tilted at :an angle to the vertical.

3. In a playground device, a person-supporting circular platform formed with pairs of hand holes and toe holes upon diametrically opposite sides of its center, said holes being so positioned as to enable a person kneeling on said platform with his hands and toes positioned in said holes to shift his weight relative to said center, means mounting said platform for rotation about an inclined axis thru said center, and a base supporting said last-mentioned means.

4. In a playground device, a flat platform formed with hand and toe holes spaced arcuately around its physical center as to enable a person kneeling to place his fingers through the holes on one side of the center and his toes in the holes on the opposite side and also as to enable a person seated substantially centrally thereon to place the fingers of his two hands through holes upon opposite sides of said center, a spindle fixedly secured to the underside of said platform and extended perpendicularly therefrom, a supporting element formed with a bore seating said spindle and supporting same at an angle, spaced bearings rotatably supporting said spindle in said bore, and diverging legs fixed to said supporting element to support same above a supporting surface.

FRANK B. SELLARDS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,689,138 Hire Oct. 23, 1928 1,860,194 Maloney May 24, 1932 2,193,154 Antinori Mar. 12, 1940 

